Tacos are so delicious that they deserve to be their own food group. They are a prime example of a type of food that almost forces you to be greedy, encouraging you to make 5 times more than you can eat or order 10 times more at your favorite Mexican restaurant.

So how should you reheat tacos? Hard tacos reheat best in the oven, while soft tacos reheat best on the grill wrapped in aluminum foil. Deconstructing the taco is generally recommended so that fresh ingredients, like lettuce and tomato, stay cold and crisp.

Without further ado, here are all the ways to reheat all the tacos. You can read all these options and choose the best way to reheat your taco based on the type you have in your hands (literally).

Enjoy your tacos, friends!

How to reheat homemade tacos

Since there are so many variations, this article is going to be a comprehensive guide dedicated to the fine art of reheating tacos, presented in an FAQ-style format to make it easy for you to find the exact answer to your own personal predicament.

How to Save Leftover Tacos for Reheating

The best thing about making tacos at home is that you have full control over how the leftovers are stored, which means you can set the stage for the best-case scenario on your taco reheating adventure.

Whether it’s taco night for one or the whole family, always make tacos one at a time so you don’t make more than you can eat. This way, you can store all your leftover dressings neatly and freshly in their own separate containers , giving you the power and control to reheat only what needs to be reheated when you’re ready for leftovers.

As for the sauce and sour cream, if you put something in a serving bowl, don’t put it back in its original container. Instead, wrap it separately or put it in a separate Tupperware container and eat it within a day or two. After being exposed to air and other foods, you don’t want to contaminate its original source in the long term.

How to Store and Reheat Hard Taco Shells

Heating taco shells the first time can be a struggle, but storing and heating them a second time requires a few life hacks.

The first time you heat up your taco shells, you need to help them hold their opening as they heat up. In fact, they make stainless steel taco racks that you can use to keep the shells upright inside the oven, which is absolutely great.

However, if you don’t have them, you can lay the taco shells on their sides and prop up the top with a wad of aluminum foil.

You’ll have plenty of room to fill the tacos the first time around, and you can save the foil balls for the next round of heating.

If you have leftover foil taco balls and think you’ll eat them in a day or two, carefully put the rest in a Ziploc brand bag, nesting one inside the other as if it were in the original package. You can stuff all the foil balls into the last one if you want to keep them together.

You can store the shells in the fridge for a few days and reheat them in the oven when you’re ready for Taco Night.

If you think it will be a few weeks before eating tacos again, put the bag of tacos in the freezer. You don’t have to thaw them when you’re ready to eat them, just reheat them in the oven.

Storing and Reheating Soft Taco Shells or Flour Tortillas

If you prepare your tacos with shells or flour tortillas, you should originally heat them with a little steam. The microwave is very useful for this.

Place a slightly damp paper towel between each shell to be heated to retain moisture, then heat for about 30 seconds to get nice and soft. If you have a huge pile, you may need to heat up a bit more.

If you have leftovers at the end of the meal, make sure they have cooled completely, then place them in a Ziploc bag and seal, removing as much air as possible. They will keep in the fridge for about a week, but if it’s going to be longer, you’d better freeze them to keep them fresh.

To reheat them again, just follow the exact same process as the first time.

How to store and reheat corn tortillas

If you use corn tortillas for your soft tacos, the lack of gluten causes them to harden quickly, making them a bit more difficult to work with. However, when they’re hot, they’re nice and pliable.

The best way to heat corn tortillas is in a skillet or griddle. You just have to heat them over medium heat for 30 seconds to a minute on each side.

If you have any leftovers, wait for them to cool completely and store them in a Ziploc bag. Due to their stiffness, they won’t keep as long in the fridge as flour tortillas, so you’ll need to use them within a day or two or put them in the freezer.

When you’re ready to eat them, feel free to moisten the tortilla with water before putting it in the pan to warm it up. It won’t get mushy or sticky, but it will rehydrate the corn a bit, making it more pliable.

How to Store and Reheat Taco Meat

To store your leftover taco meat, simply place it in a Tupperware container with a tight-fitting lid (I use these from Amazon). It will keep safely in your fridge for up to 3 days.

If you prefer to freeze it, try to put it in a freezer-safe container that is the right size so that there is an inch of space, no more, in the container once the meat is well packaged.

Whether it goes in the fridge or freezer, make sure it’s at room temperature first.

To reheat it, put it in a skillet over medium heat. If you’re heating it from the freezer, using a lid will keep the humidity levels near perfect, but if it’s straight from the fridge, you may want to add a teaspoon of water or a drizzle of fresh olive oil to prevent the meat from drying out.

How to stuff leftover tacos to reheat

If you’ve gotten too excited and filled your plate with too many tacos, filled to the brim, you may want to separate the fillings before attempting to reheat your taco in the future.

Although it’s safe to reheat sour cream gently, it’s not always ideal. Not to mention the lettuce and guacamole, if your taco was of the deluxe variety. Some foods are better cold, especially when paired with perfectly heated taco shells and meat.

When you’re ready to eat the leftovers, simply unwrap the taco and scoop out all the ingredients. Keep fresh items in a separate pile, including toppings like sour cream or guacamole that you prefer to keep cold.

Remove the meat and beans , if any, and keep them in a separate container to warm them up.

How to Reheat Premade Hard Tacos in the Microwave

Find a microwave-safe bowl (I like these on Amazon) and put the meat and beans in the bottom. Turn the shell upside down, carefully hanging over the edge of the bowl.

Microwave for 30 seconds and check that everything is hot enough. If not, push it back in for another 10 seconds at a time until you’re satisfied with the temperature.

Now you can fill your tacos, adding the cold ingredients so that the food is almost like new.

How to reheat premade hard tacos in the oven or on the stove

Preheat your oven to 350F and place your shells on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper to warm them up so they’re crisp again. It will only take about 10 minutes, maybe a little longer if you put them in the oven before it’s fully heated.

You can also heat the shells by grilling them in a hot skillet for 45 seconds to a minute on each side.

You can also heat the meat and beans in a pan, and you can add a little oil to cool the ingredients and prevent them from sticking to the pan. Heat for about 3 minutes or until you are satisfied with the temperature.

When everything is hot, add the cold ingredients and enjoy your taco repeat.

How to Reheat Premade Soft Tacos in the Microwave

You have two options for reheating premade soft tacos in the microwave.

The first option is to empty the filling into a microwave-safe bowl, separating the fillings that you prefer to stay cold, and cover the bowl with a paper towel. On the paper towel you can place the tortilla or the soft shell for tacos. In this way, you can heat everything together in only about 30 seconds.

Your other alternative is to just heat everything together. This means the lettuce and sour cream are going to get hot too, but I promise you there’s no danger. After one or two bites, it won’t seem weird anymore.

How to Reheat Premade Soft Tacos in the Oven

Reheating soft tacos in the oven is super easy, but it will take you 10-15 minutes, so it’s great if you have a few errands to run while you’re getting ready to enjoy leftovers.

Just preheat the oven to 375F and pop the foil-wrapped soft taco directly onto the oven racks. After 10 minutes, you can use the “toothpick” test to see if the center of the soft cue is hot by inserting a long toothpick into the cue, pulling it out, and quickly touching the wood to see if it’s hot.

If it’s not hot in the slightest, give the taco another 5 minutes. If it’s steaming, your taco is ready to eat.

How to reheat a soft taco or burrito on the grill

A grill like the George Foreman or sandwich press is not ideal for heating up hard tacos, but it is for soft tacos and burritos.

Turn it on and warm it up. While it heats up, make sure your taco or burrito is well wrapped in aluminum foil. This will keep the grill clean and make sure all the fillings stay in the taco where they are on the bottom.

Put your taco on the grill and close the lid on top so both sides heat evenly and the heat permeates well. It will take 5-8 minutes on high heat to heat through.

How to reheat leftovers from a fast food restaurant

Many of the above steps for homemade tacos apply to the tacos you order at your favorite fast food or Mexican restaurant, but there are some specialties that really deserve their own reheating instructions. For traditional tacos, you can heat them up just like precooked homemade tacos, as above.

How to reheat a gordita or chalupa from Taco Bell

A Taco Bell gordita wraps traditional taco fillings inside a flatbread “shell” for a very satisfying and filling taco.

A Chalupa is much the same, only the flatbread shell is deep-fried for added flavor and goodness. It’s highly unlikely that you’ll have leftovers from any of these self-serve favorites, but if you do, the best way to reheat them in a hurry is to use the microwave.

The flatbreads are hearty enough to hold up to the microwave’s tendency to reduce minor shells to a soggy mess, and they’re meant to be soft, not crispy, so you don’t need the air-drying effects of an oven or toaster oven. .

For best results, remove any ingredients you prefer to keep cold, such as sour cream or guacamole, then wrap your gordita or chalupa in a paper towel. Microwave on high for 1 minute, then let it steam for a minute or so before you bite into it, so you don’t burn your mouth.

How to Reheat a Taco Bell Gordita Crunch

A Gordita Crunch is a traditional hard-shell taco that is wrapped in a Gordita-style flatbread, using a layer of refried beans to hold the two shells together. You can heat it up according to the instructions for a simple gordita, but the crunch won’t be as satisfying.

If you want to bring back the crunch, you’ll need the help of a toaster oven or your traditional oven. But first, you’ll need to remove all the fillings, including the meat and beans.

Heat your oven to 375F, or set your toaster oven to the same temperature. Pop the fused shells in for 5 minutes, checking occasionally to make sure the outer shell doesn’t darken or get too dry for your liking, and the inside doesn’t sag.

While the shells are crisping again, you can heat the meat and beans in a skillet or microwave for 30-45 seconds.

Once the inner shell is hot and crispy, you can fill your taco.

How to Store and Reheat Homemade Nachos

Nachos can be even more difficult to reheat than hard tacos, but it is possible. As with the tacos, the best thing to do is try to separate some of the ingredients before heating the nachos a second time.

If you can, it’s a good idea to remove any wet ingredients, such as tomato, sour cream, or guacamole, even before storing to prevent soggy potatoes. It’s also easier to remove them before storing than after they’ve been refrigerated. It’s best to add a little chopped fresh tomato and/or sour cream after reheating to get your nachos back to like-new condition.

To heat them, you will get the best results but roasting them in your oven. Preheat your oven to 250F and cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. The ideal thing for nachos is to do it slowly, so you will need a little patience.

Add your leftover nachos to the tray and allow them to heat up in the oven for about 15 minutes. If you want twice as spectacular nachos, when about 12 minutes have passed, add a new layer of shredded cheese and turn up the heat on the grill for the last 3 minutes.

When everything is piping hot, let the nachos cool for a minute or two, then continue adding any cold toppings you wanted to add.

How to Reheat a Taco Bell Bean Burrito

When you’re ready to eat a leftover Taco Bell bean burrito, the last thing you want is to wait 30 minutes for piping-hot perfection to come out of the oven, but the second to last thing you want is for a soggy mess to come out of the microwave in 3 minutes. .

The best option for reheating a Taco Bell bean burrito is to combine the forces of your microwave and oven or, if you have one, your toaster oven.

First, turn your oven on to about 350 degrees. It won’t have time to fully warm up, but it’s good to get it up and running as soon as possible. Make sure your burrito is not wrapped in aluminum foil.

Instead, wrap it in a piece of kitchen paper. Microwave for 1 minute to warm up the inside of your burrito. Unwrap it from the kitchen paper and put it in the oven.

Depending on how fast your oven heats up, you may need to leave the burrito in for up to 10 minutes to crisp up the outside, but at least the inside won’t be cold.

If you have a toaster oven, you can pop the burrito in there medium hot. Make sure the heat is somewhere in the 350 range and leave the burrito in for about 2 minutes. Check it out and if it needs a little more time, flip it over and leave another minute or two.

How to Reheat a Taco Bell Quesadilla

There are two great ways to reheat Taco Bell quesadillas:

For best results, place leftover quesadilla in a sandwich press or George Foreman grill and close the lid for about 3 minutes. Depending on the type of quesadilla, it may run a bit, but the results will be worth a little cleanup.
An alternative that is almost as good is to use a toaster oven to reheat your quesadilla. Bake at about 350F for 3 minutes to heat through, then turn the heat up to toasty to allow the exterior to crisp up for a minute or less.

How to Reheat a Chipotle Burrito

Chipotle burritos are famous for their size, and there’s nothing to be ashamed of if you can’t finish an entire serving in one go. You should always order leftovers to go, though, because they’re almost as good warmed up the next day.

If you have ingredients inside your burrito that you prefer to stay cold, you can open the leftovers, take out any cold ingredients, and re-wrap to reheat.

My favorite way to reheat a Chipotle burrito is by using a toaster oven, if you have one. All you have to do is wrap our burrito in aluminum foil, leaving an open edge for moisture and steam to escape. Set the toaster oven to 375F and leave the burrito in for 10 minutes.

If you don’t have a toaster oven, you can get the same results using your oven, at the same temperature. The much larger space is going to take longer to heat up your one burrito, so you’ll leave it inside at 375F for about 15 minutes. The biggest drawback is that it takes longer to heat up the oven in the first place, which is a step you can skip if you have a toaster oven.

If you have left any ingredients out to keep them cold, you can add them back as soon as the main burrito is piping hot.

How to Reheat Tacos - The Complete Guide